✈️ JETEX Terminal Marks Three Months of Operations, While LTBA Retains 77% of Traffic
According to an August 7, 2026 report, the JETEX-İGA dedicated terminal at Istanbul Airport (LTFM) served approximately 1,500 passengers during the three months after its May 5 opening. Terms published on July 28 continued to list paid dedicated passenger and business aviation services, showing that the terminal had moved from launch into ongoing operations. Avi-Go data show that from July 6 to August 19, 2026, LTFM recorded 647 business aircraft movements, comprising 326 departures and 321 arrivals. During the same period, Istanbul Atatürk Airport (LTBA) recorded 2,204 movements, comprising 1,109 departures and 1,095 arrivals. The two airports recorded 2,851 movements in total, with LTBA accounting for 77.3% and handling 1,557 more movements than LTFM. Terminal passenger numbers and airport business aircraft movements use different measurement bases and cannot be directly converted, but the data show that while LTFM's dedicated terminal is operating continuously, most Istanbul business aircraft activity remains concentrated at LTBA.
Impact: LTFM has established a paid dedicated-service gateway, but its airport-wide business aircraft movement volume remains substantially below LTBA's. JETEX-İGA's terminal product performance and mission-resource allocation across the two airports must be assessed separately; approximately 1,500 terminal passengers cannot substitute for movement counts or market share.
Recommendation: JETEX-İGA should continuously record the business aircraft missions handled by the dedicated terminal, passenger usage rates, services purchased, and average spend. Handling providers and brokers serving both airports should separately track LTFM and LTBA movement distribution by mission type before adjusting staffing and ground-service arrangements.